As a forty-six year old English fan of all things horror, I was obviously raised on a diet of Hammer films. What makes Hammer so special? (See my previous article, Hammer – A History of Brilliance) Undoubtedly the period costumes, gothic settings and, of course, the ultimate horror icons Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee, made the films so memorable for a period of over thirty years. But one equally important ingredient defined those films too; the Hammer glamour. A whole host of girls, some talented actresses, some not, but all of them stunning, contributed to the enduring popularity of Hammer. In this retrospective I pay homage to the girls who made the formative years of a fledgling horror fan so utterly memorable and while not all get a mention, they are so numerous; you can bet they all passed through my mind as I wrote (one of them even follows me on Twitter and you can’t begin to imagine how excited that made me!) Here then, in no particular order, are the girls...

1. INGRID PITT

Ingrid was born in Poland on 21st November 1937 and as a child during WWII was interned in a Nazi concentration camp. Surviving this she eventually grew up in East Berlin from where she escaped in 1962 by swimming across the River Spree. Initially appearing in low-budget films in Spain, Ingrid was cast in 1968 in Where Eagles Dare alongside Richard Burton and Clint Eastwood. Despite only appearing in two Hammer films during its ‘Golden Era’ (The Vampire Lovers and Countess Dracula) Ingrid is felt by many fans to be THE Hammer girl. Post-Hammer, Ingrid appeared in The Wicker Man and then worked as a writer. She died on 23rd November 2010 after suffering from a heart condition for several years.

Though founded in 1934, and making films from then up to the present (albeit very off and on at times) with The Quiet Ones being scheduled for release here in the UK April 2014, Hammer Studios will forever be linked with its dark and gothic Hammer Horror films. These were chiefly produced between mid 1950s to the mid 1970s, frequently at a fairly prolific rate. As a forty something, English, horror fan, Hammer films were the staple diet of my ‘formative’ years. For that reason I consider myself incredibly fortunate. To cut my teeth (fangs?) on films with the maestros of Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee in lead roles was just the best apprenticeship.

From its inception in 1934, through various financial comings and goings and of course World War 2, Hammer Productions eventually found a home at Down Place on the banks of the River Thames in 1949. Though it was later renamed Bray Studios and was used throughout the majority of the heyday until 1966. Its grounds were used for much of the location shooting that followed and contributed much to Hammer’s look and feel. Hammer studios first foray into horror came in 1955 with The Quatermass Xperiment, an adaptation of the BBC television series.

1957 saw the release by Hammer of their first color horror film, The Curse of Frankenstein, and like so many that followed, as well as being written by Jimmy Sangster, it was also shot in technicolor and praised for its visual style. It was also the first of many horror films starring Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee, two actors who became synonymous with Hammer. Lee was outstanding as the monster (despite the seemingly unenviable task of following in Boris Karloff’s iconic footsteps) proving, as he did so many times subsequently, that he had incredible physical presence and Cushing was impeccable as ever in his role as Baron Frankenstein; living up to his later nickname ‘the gentleman of horror’.

This documentary brings together some of Hollywood's masters of the horror genre, with clips of their most memorable and terrifying movie moments. MASTERS OF HORROR is the long-anticipated sequel to last Halloween's highly successful DVD release "Boogeymen," which brought horror movie fans up-close-and-personal with famed horror figures such as Freddy Krueger and Jason from the "Friday the 13th" films.Hosted by "Evil Dead" star Bruce Campbell, MASTERS OF HORROR is a 90-minute documentary featuring exclusive, never-before-seen interviews with horror masters and directors John Carpenter, Wes Craven, Dario Argento and Tobe Hooper among many others, as well as Hollywood's makeup and special effects gurus Rick Baker and Tom Savini. The segments focus on the masters' landmark films and are illustrated with clips of the most memorable moments from 25 of the greatest horror movies of all time, including "An American Werewolf in London," "Day of the Dead," "Halloween," "Nightmare on Elm Street," "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" and "The Thing."MASTERS OF HORROR also visits the studios of Baker, Savini and KNB FX for tips from the experts on how viewers can scare their friends with horrific Hollywood make-up effects.